The present invention relates generally to a snowboard binding. More specifically, the present invention relates to a binding mechanism affixed to a snowboard and a cleat affixed to a boot with the cleat being releasably engaged by the binding mechanism.
In the sport of snowboarding, a rider rides the snowboard down a snow covered hill. The snowboard is shaped generally like a small surfboard or a large skateboard without wheels. The rider stands with his feet generally transverse to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard. It is necessary to provide means to secure the rider's boots to the snowboard.
It is desirable to have a manual release for the snowboard binding that is easy for the rider to operate. This is advantageous when the rider wishes to dismount from the board and walk on the terrain, or when he wishes to release one foot and push himself a short distance on snow while the other foot is bound to the snowboard, or when the rider wants to disengage the binding to get on or off a lift. Therefore, it is desirable to have a snowboard binding which securely holds the boots to the snowboard, does not release when the rider falls, but is easy to manually release.
When the rider does walk in the snow, it is common for snow to be caked to the sole of the rider's snowboard boots. This interferes with remounting the boot onto the snowboard because snow becomes trapped between the sole of the boot and the top surface of the snowboard and in the binding mechanism itself, making it difficult to close and latch the mechanism. It is therefore desirable to have a boot and cleat design which is not prone to having snow stick to it. It is also desirable to have a cleat and binding design which operates despite the presence of snow on the cleat, the sole of the boot, or the top surface of the snowboard.
Since a rider may find himself on uneven terrain when he needs to engage his boots into the binding, it is also desirable to have a binding mechanism which operates with an easy step-in motion. Such a binding mechanism should make it easy to place the boot in the proper location relative to the binding and to engage the cleat with the binding by the step-in motion.
To provide secure engagement of the boot against the snowboard, it is desirable that the attachment points of the cleat be far apart from one another. This will securely hold the boot in place during riding and help prevent lift up of the heel during maneuvering. However, a large cleat makes it cumbersome to walk as it is prone to knocking against the rider's legs as he walks and also increases the stiffness of the sole of the boot making it more difficult to walk. There is therefore a need for a binding and cleat design which provides adequate binding strength, yet still allows the snowboard rider to walk easily when the boot is disengaged from the binding.
As a rider is using the snowboard, he may traverse rough terrain. If the cleat is mounted directly on the top surface of the snowboard, this increases the transmission of vibration through the snowboard into the rider's foot making riding uncomfortable. It is therefore desirable to have a cleat and binding design which absorbs vibration from the terrain which is transmitted through the snowboard.
A snowboard binding generally orients the rider's boots a fixed distance apart and transverse to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard. This can be uncomfortable for some riders. It is therefore desirable to have a binding mechanism and cleat design which allows for easy adjustment of the angular orientation of the boots relative to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard and also allows for adjustment of the spacing of the boots relative to one another.
Snowboard binding mechanisms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,299,823 (Glaser), U.S. Pat. No. 5,236,216 (Ratzek), U.S. Pat. No. 5,145,202 (Miller), U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,073 (Raines), U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,116 (Hill), U.S. Pat. No. 3,900,204 (Weber), and U.S. Reissue Pat. No. Re. 33,544. U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,858 (Faulin) discloses a shoe sole for a ski binding.